Department of Neuroscience, Uppsala University, Box 593, 75124 Uppsala, Sweden.
Br J Nutr. 2012 Oct 28;108(8):1341-5. doi: 10.1017/S000711451100688X. Epub 2012 Jan 3.
Smoking during pregnancy has been shown to be detrimental for the developing fetus. The effects of active and passive maternal smoking on umbilical cord serum levels of vitamin A and vitamin E were examined. Secondary measures included anthropometric parameters in the newborn. Maternal and umbilical cord serum levels of vitamins A and E were measured at delivery. The mothers were assigned to three groups: non-smoking (n 12); passive smoking (n 13); active smoking (n 18). Based on multivariate linear regressions, active smoking during pregnancy was associated with increased umbilical cord serum levels of vitamin A and vitamin E. While enhanced circulating levels of vitamin A in cord blood were also found in non-smoking mothers exposed to tobacco smoke during pregnancy, those of vitamin E were not influenced. Further, an inverse association between smoking behaviour during pregnancy and birth length was observed, with shortest length in active smokers followed by passive smoking mothers. Active and passive maternal smoking behaviour during pregnancy increases the fetal demand for antioxidant compounds in order to counteract the oxidative burden by cigarette smoke. Against this background, the observed increase in umbilical cord serum levels of vitamins A and E may subserve antioxidative processes in response to tobacco smoke-induced oxidative stress. This would reduce the availability of vitamins A and E for fetal maturation, which is critical inasmuch as both compounds are indispensable for the developing fetus. However, due to the cross-sectional nature of our observation, this line of reasoning definitely requires validation in cause-effect experiments in the future.
吸烟会对胎儿的发育造成损害，这一点已得到证实。本研究旨在探讨母亲主动和被动吸烟对脐带血清维生素 A 和维生素 E 水平的影响。次要措施包括新生儿的人体测量参数。在分娩时测量母亲和脐带血清中的维生素 A 和 E 水平。将母亲分为三组：不吸烟（n=12）；被动吸烟（n=13）；主动吸烟（n=18）。基于多元线性回归分析，发现怀孕期间主动吸烟与脐带血清中维生素 A 和维生素 E 水平升高有关。虽然在怀孕期间暴露于烟草烟雾的不吸烟母亲的脐血中也发现了维生素 A 循环水平升高，但维生素 E 水平不受影响。此外，还观察到怀孕期间吸烟行为与出生长度之间存在负相关，主动吸烟者的出生长度最短，其次是被动吸烟者。怀孕期间母亲主动和被动吸烟行为会增加胎儿对抗氧化化合物的需求，以抵消香烟烟雾带来的氧化应激。在此背景下，观察到脐带血清中维生素 A 和 E 水平升高可能是对烟草烟雾引起的氧化应激的抗氧化反应。这会减少维生素 A 和 E 对胎儿成熟的供应，因为这两种化合物对正在发育的胎儿都是必不可少的。然而，由于我们的观察是横断面的，因此这种推理肯定需要在未来的因果实验中得到验证。
